Sears, IBM Interested In Selling Prodigy?

CHICAGO - Talk that Sears, Roebuck & Co. and International Business Machines Corp. will sell Prodigy Services Co. is swirling through the business community.

The rumors were fueled by a Wall Street Journal story yesterday that said IBM had hired investment bankers to explore selling its stake in Prodigy. The story also quoted Sears Chairman and Chief Executive Arthur Martinez as saying he would decide what to do with Sears' stake in Prodigy by the end of this quarter.

Martinez would not confirm that position, but said yesterday, "We are evaluating how Prodigy fits in with our focus on retailing and are looking at that in the first quarter."

Since Sears began divesting its subsidiaries in early 1993, the company has raised $6.5 billion in gross proceeds; shareholders have also benefited handsomely, thanks to tax-free dividend shares from spinoffs of both Dean Witter, Discover & Co. and Allstate.

Since the Homart divestiture was completed in December, Sears no longer has subsidiaries. In joint ventures, however, it is co-owner with IBM of both Prodigy and Advantis. Based in White Plains, N.Y., Prodigy was launched in 1990 and was the first major online service to seek customers among ordinary households.